The Assyrians :: essays research papers

The AssyriansThere are different periods of the Assyrian empire. The first was called theOld Assyrian period which lasted from 2000-1550 BC. Then there was the MiddleAssyrian period which lasted from 1550-1200 BC. The last was the Neo-Assyrianperiod which lasted from 1200-600 BC. The terminal phase of the Neo-Assyrianperiod is called the Assyrian Empire.The Old and Middle Assyrian periods ( 2000 - 1200 BC )The name Ashur was used by the Assyrians to designate not only their country,but also their most antique city and their national god. The cities of Ashur(near modern al-Sharqat), Nineveh, and Irbil formed a triangle that defined theoriginal territory of Assyria. Assyrias early history was marked by frequentepisodes of hostile rule. Assyria finally gained its independence around 2000BC. About this time the Assyrians established a number of trading colonies inCappadocia (central Anatolia), protected by treaties with local Hattic rulers.The most principal(prenominal) of these was at Kultepe (Kanesh), north of present-dayKayseri, Turkey. Political developments Brought this enterprise to an end in1750 BC. Assyria lost its independence to a dynasty of Amorite. Then Hammurabiof Babylon took over and established himself ruler of Assyria. The clash ofHammurabis Old Babylonian dynasty gave Assyria only temporary relief. It soonfell on a lower floor the control of the Mitanni, until that state was destroyed by theHittites c.1350 BC.The Early Neo-Assyrian Period (c.1200-600 BC)After the yield of Mittanni, Assyria regained its independence and was ableto hold it thanks to the weakness of its neighbors. The most important event inAssyrian history during the 13 century BC, was the capture of Babylon by forceTukulti-Ninurta (r.1244-1208 BC). Although the conquest was short-lived thememory of it remained strong. In the following centuries the chief adversariesof the Assyrians were the Aramaeans, who settled in Syria and along the upperTigris and the Euphrates rivers, where they founded a number of states. In the9th century BC, to a lower place Ashurnasirpal II (r.883-859 BC) and Shalmaneser triplet (859-824 BC), the Assyrians finally managed to conquer Bit-Adini (Beth-Eden), themost powerful Aramaen state on the upper Euphrates. Shalmaneser then tried toinvade the Syrian heartland, where he met with monstrous resistance from acoalition of kings that included Ahab of Israel. They successfully opposed himat the battle karkar in 853 BC. Internal disagreements marked the end ofShalmanesers reign, and many of his conquests were lost.Assyrian power began with Tiglath-Peleser III (r. 745-727 BC) taking over thethrone. He began on administrative reforms aimed at strengthening royalauthority over the provinces. Districts were reduced in size and placed under